Site

Big Ten Tournament: Michigan vs. Michigan State Open Thread

Michigan and Michigan State one more time. The Spartans and Wolverines face off for the Big Ten Tournament Championship this afternoon. Michigan took the first two meetings, but the Spartans are hungry for revenge.

Tip-off is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. (CBS) with the NCAA tournament selection show to follow at 6:00 p.m. (CBS). The Wolverines are in play for a No. 1 seed, win or lose, and will be looking to sweep the Big Ten hardware after winning the regular season outright by three games.

The passing has certainly improved, but it is also easier for Morgan to score points when the refs let him stay on the floor.

guestavo

Our sharp shooters aren’t leaving it short for no reason refs

Chezaroo

Very few open looks today

Burke_Does_Work

Not a shooting foul???

Rich74

And now you call a hold. Thanks.

Madrox

My word these refs have no idea whats going on do they?

Burke_Does_Work

This reffing reminds me of the the NC game last year

MGoTweeter

Really needed stops in those last two possessions. Probably gonna take some msu turnovers leading to dunks to get back in it

Wayman Britt

I would rather not see the 1-3-1 the rest of the game.

MGoTweeter

It was worth trying cause michigan needed turnovers but it has not been very effective today

mistersuits

Can’t get a stop anytime after a made basket awful hard to start a rally. If the final margin of this game is around what it was at halftime, then I’ll feel fine. Michigan’s chances in march are bad with double digit Max minutes.

mistersuits

It’s going to be important to get their legs back, rested and ready. Unfortunately for Michigan, Milwaukee is a Thursday/Saturday pod.

MLaw

Fortunately I think we are playing a 15 seed.

Madrox

What about the 1 seed out East? I am actually asking, is it Thursday or Friday?

East only matters for second weekend- that would be Friday Sunday. First weekend is almost certainly MKE on Thursday Saturday.

Madrox

So all this talk about MSG would be the second weekend?

MLaw

Yup first weekend are in the sub regionals.

Madrox

Ahhhhhh, cool, thanks

MGoTweeter

Terrible press. Two guys rotated down instead of one and both were way late

Chezaroo

First foul on Morgan this half. Saved him for what?

MLaw

Inconsistent officiating made it less of an issue. More than 20 fouls in the first half only 9 in the second so far.

Rich74

That’s it, speed it up!

Burke_Does_Work

Gonna have to start firing 30 footers to get back into this. Let Zak and Nik go at it

jemblue

I like how Ellis gets 4 personals but Payne somehow has only 1.

Dustin Stone

Dagger?

MLaw

Yup blouses. But they competed in the second 10 minutes much better this half.

mistersuits

Dagger was Max B checking into the game at 18:30 in the first half.

Putin

Max wasn’t the reason we got smoked today

MAZS

really unseemly to pick on Max. He actually played decent defense on Payne. Beilein deserves some fault for not getting Max more time during the season–this foul situation was bound to happen.

MGoTweeter

How do you miss an obvious kick there?

Burke_Does_Work

Agreed, but it did work out for us

jemblue

Morgan came to play. Too bad he had no chance to in the first half.

MGoTweeter

Partly his fault. Took two bad fouls

jemblue

The second was a joke – not sure he made contact.

subalum06

Spartans passed the ball around that last possession like we would have last year.

MLaw

Or in games we win. Just saying.

guestavo

our ball movement has been better this year

Putin

LeVert drives and gets the D to collapse, but instead of kicking out for the wide open three, he lobs up dipsy-do garbage finger rolls with his off hand. My 8th grade coach would bench us for that nonsense.

guestavo

it was a good shot

kam

u really think that was a bad shot? LOL and its not like we have been making 3s

MGoTweeter

I was ok with the shot. He makes those a lot

kam

and yes your 8th grade coach would have because you’re in 8th grade. caris is better than an 8th grader

Truth

LeVert is brilliant when the offence is clicking (see: disrupting passing lanes, draining threes, busting past overaggressive defenders) but he becomes totally schoolyard when desperation sets in (See: head-down dribble drives right into a trap and complete obliviousness to open roll men/wing men).

egasper

see ya thursday

Rich74

Arch74 signing out.

Madrox

Well, good regular season, now just 6 more wins and finish off what they couldn’t last year.

Wayman Britt

Well it’s game, but I don’t feel bad. MSU is an extremely good team. Time to get ready for the NCAA.

MLaw

and I think they are peaking at the right time. /CBS’d

guestavo

MSU has the worst record out of the top 4 in the B1G against the top 4

Tony DeMaria

Hey guys 17-4 against the Big Ten this year and a 2 seed without McGary. Sucks losing to State but nothing to be ashamed about. Let’s get ready for a tourney run

Brandon

Agreed. I’d much rather lose to Wisconsin or anyone else here but this isn’t the end of the world. Still 2-1 vs. these clowns this year

Dustin Stone

Can’t wait to finally break out of Big Ten play and see some new teams…Tourney can’t get here soon enough! Go Blue

Wayman Britt

I agree getting out of the conference will be huge difference

MLaw

And a better set of officials hopefully.

Madrox

Good, get all this missed out now Caris, save all those makes for the tourney

guestavo

Still a losing record for their seniors *shrug*

Madrox

And a losing record this season against Michigan

jemblue

We still won the season series. They haven’t won the series in five years.

moenice

Tourney time… Anything can happen Go Blue… Hats off to State this time…

Madrox

Florida up 1, at the FT line with 23 seconds left on ESPN, just an fyi

MGoTweeter

Good run for michigan. Just not enough legs today. Rest up and let’s start another big ncaa tourney run

Wayman Britt

Yes, can’t wait. It would help if we learned a little better defense in the next 3 days.

Chezaroo

Not likely

Chezaroo

Being a realist, it’s hard to argue that State is not a much better defensive team when they have Dawson. Better team won today, they contested everything, and really forced tough looks. When JMo only plays 4 minutes in first half, it set the tone for our offensive flow. Just couldn’t get it going today. Lot of basketball left, hopefully. Go Blue!!

MGoTweeter

We got a selection show open thread or just using this one? Personally I vote for new thread. Too much bad juju here

MLaw

Agreed.

MLaw

MSU better overall record, but 4 fewer 10 50 wins. Missing the point.

Burke_Does_Work

It’s debatable though, they played an extra game than us. We could’ve scheduled another bottom feeder in non conference and have the same record.

jemblue

Yeah, 26-8 vs. 25-8 is a wash.

jemblue

LOL at them jumping around and hugging like they won the national championship.

Joel_C

I like that beating us feels like an accomplishment of that magnitude

Dustin Stone

Any chance this game is a learning lesson that tightens their focus going forward? Any chance that McGary reveals the superman crest underneath that suit and makes a comeback? Bahhh gotta love the story lines that define March!

MLaw

Undoubtedly helps them focus this week. McGary won’t play the first two weekends I don’t think.

Dustin Stone

If he can make it back…how much do we play him? Team chemistry and rust, two factors to weigh

Bielefeldt should not have played so early; I know we had foul issues but it seems like a strange time to experiment with the line up, and killed our momentum the way McLimans used to. (I mean, I liked McLimans but Spike Albrecht is a better post man.) That said, Bielefeldt did make a couple of clutch plays, in a 2008 wandering-in-the-desert-Zach Gibson sorta way.

kam

SPIKE????

Richmond_Eric

To me, it was simply Michigan did not (or could not due to MSU D) share the ball and play the Michigan way.

David Remmler

Keys to the game: #1. Early foul trouble for Michigan bigs led to defensive and rebounding liabilities #2. MSU had greater intensity – the game meant much more to them than it did to Michigan

#2 shouldn’t be a problem in the NCAA tourney. #1 is another matter. That’s why not having McGary may keep them from another Final Four.